Across the Pacific

I just got back from sampling the North Pacific Gyre with NOAA. We found visible plastic every day in the manta tows once we had entered the North Pacific High, which is the “Garbage Patch” area. The bridge watch also sighted some interesting floating trash – a lime green suitcase was the most unusual – though we weren’t quick enough to get a photo of it.

Brief daily updates about cruise activities were posted here, along with a fine selection of pretty pictures. And I’m always a big fan of science ship fashion – the combination of orange hardhat/workvest and blue-and-yellow boots is TOTALLY going to be the next big thing. (Though can I get a work vest designed to actually fit female anatomy? Please?)

Share this:

Like this:

Related

Responses

I am one of the docents for the new Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Reef at NMNH in DC. Part of the reef is made from plastic “yarn” and other trash to teach people about what is happening to the ocean and coral because of the plastic and other trash in the ocean. I am going to refer people to Seaplex on line so they can see for themselves what is happening and what the trash looks like and how it is destroying sealife.

Thank s to you and your colleagues for your work.

By: Andrea Kline on November 7, 2010 at 3:01 pm

Hello Andrea,

Thanks for your comment, and for your great work at NMNH. I hope I can make it to DC to see the Crochet Coral Reef myself. Another great resource on marine debris is the NOAA Marine Debris Program website.

Due to my thesis in design i could not withstand to stick my nose into the marine debris issue even if i started to think about future consumption strategies while looking onto it from different angles.

So I would like to spend some time for researching on harvest strategies.

Can you give me some insights on that?

Do you use geometry based filtering processes or other physical, bionical effects to catch debris but leave liveforms apart?

Where there concepts which totally failed?

I ask because if I start i dont want to reinvent a fourcorning stone which was intended to be a wheel one day.

Best regards ralph

By: Ralph on November 8, 2010 at 9:24 am

Hello Ralph,

Scripps is not working on cleanup efforts at this time. You might want to look at Project Kaisei – http://projectkaisei.org/.